The Nets and Magic were reportedly discussing a deal earlier this week that would have included Kris Humphries, Brook Lopez, MarShon Brooks and three first-round picks in a package for Howard. As time went on, optimism for the trade diminished.

“I think the chances are remote,” Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports told WFAN on Tuesday. “Orlando is just not very interested in what the Nets have.”

But the teams are “still plugging away” on various options, a source told CBSSports.com.

The Lakers are also thought to be in the mix, and Los Angeles’ addition of Steve Nash could be enough to entice Howard to add another team to his wish list. Orlando has had its eye on Lakers star Andrew Bynum, according to Wojnarowski.

“Everything is in play,” another source told CBSSports.com.

Brooklyn and LA may need a third team to move a potential Howard deal forward. Neither team would be able to easily absorb the bad contracts Orlando would reportedly be looking to dump in a trade.

Howard may have placed Orlando in a rough spot when he told Yahoo! Sports there’s “only one team” he’d pass on free agency for after the 2012-13 season.

While he wasn’t specific, that franchise was widely believed to be the Nets. Magic general manager Rob Hennigan confirmed Monday that Howard reissued a trade request to Brooklyn last Friday.

“What I can tell you is he’s Dwight Howard,” said Hennigan. “He’s one of the best players in the NBA, so a lot of teams have interest in Dwight, as they should, and it’s our job to continue to analyze what’s in the best interests for us and how we go about making that decision.”

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